


The Meet-Cute (Actually a Rescue but Whatever)

by rizlowwritessortof



Series: Dean and Toby [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: F/M, None for Part 1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-02-10
Packaged: 2021-02-26 11:31:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22648360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rizlowwritessortof/pseuds/rizlowwritessortof
Summary: Just a little story of how Dean met Toby... Part 1 of 4
Relationships: Dean x Toby (female OC)
Series: Dean and Toby [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1629223
Kudos: 5





	The Meet-Cute (Actually a Rescue but Whatever)

Consciousness nudged at her, faint but insistent. Her eyelids were heavy, reluctant to open, and it took a few tries before she could keep them from drifting shut again. It was dark, and she squinted, trying to pick out details.

A snore from across the room sent a jolt of fear zipping through her, and she bit her lips to stifle a startled cry. She moved her arms and legs, cautious, terrified of alerting whoever was there that she was awake. She didn’t seem to be restrained but, afraid to move for the moment, she listened, waited. A man clearing his throat in another part of the room made her muscles tense in panic, but he shifted and sighed deeply, clearly asleep.

It was probably now or never. She moved, seemingly an inch at a time, until she was sitting up at the edge of the bed. She was barefoot, but it was too dark to look for her shoes, and she couldn’t risk making noise. As she slowly rose to her feet, the light from the gap in the curtains gleamed on something on the table near the door – car keys. 

She held her breath, moving silently, adrenaline pumping through her veins, hyper-aware of every breath and rustle of movement from the men still asleep in the room. After what seemed like hours, she reached her goal, staring down at the keys for a few seconds to build up her courage.

She picked them up slowly, not allowing them to clink against each other or the table, then closed her fingers around the deadbolt. The lock made a muffled click and her heart hammered in her chest, but she didn’t hesitate, just swung the door open and stepped outside, pulling it closed behind her.

A black beast of a car sat outside the room, shining in the glow of the security lights, and she inserted the key in the door lock, praying it would work. The key turned, and she flinched at the creak of the hinges as she swung the door wide. They were surely awake now, they had to have heard that. She climbed quickly inside, pulling the door shut, shoving the key into the ignition and turning it, the growl of the engine startling a cry from her. “Shit!” Shifting into reverse, she backed up and glanced towards the motel door just as it flew inward, two men charging out towards her. Her eyes wide, she slammed it into drive, spitting gravel from the tires as she punched it, fishtailing on her way out of the parking lot. The tires bit into the smooth surface of the street, and the car surged forward, leaving them shouting after her.

“Son of a bitch!”

~~~~~~~~~~

“Damn it, Sammy, I knew one of us should stay awake!”

“How were we supposed to know she’d run? Just take it easy, I have an idea.”

“Oh, _now_ you have an idea. Awesome.”

Sam rolled his eyes, pulling his laptop towards him as he dropped into the chair. “You just got a new phone a couple of months ago, remember? I keep the old one charged in the glove box in case we need a spare. I left the GPS active. We can track her.”

“Fine. Well, hurry up. I’ll go find us a car.”

She hadn’t gone far. Within twenty minutes they were pulling in behind the Impala, which was parked outside a ranch-style house in a little town just a few miles down the road. Dean hadn’t said a word, and Sam glanced over, assessing his brother’s mood before he spoke. “Dean – she doesn’t know who we are. For all she knows, we could have been the ones that abducted her.”

“I know.”

“She’s probably freaking out.”

“I know, Sammy.”

“Just take it easy on her…”

“Sam! Just – take this car somewhere and ditch it.”

Sam held up his hands, his eyes flashing ‘whatever’ as he ducked out the passenger side door. As soon as Dean was outside the car, he tried again. “I’m just sayin’…”

“Sam, I swear to God, if you say one more goddamn word…”

“Fine! I’ll go ditch the car!” Sam shoved his way by Dean and climbed back inside the Toyota they had ‘borrowed’ to follow Baby, starting it up and backing out with a tight-lipped glare at his older brother. Dean rolled his eyes, striding towards the open door of the house.

“Hello?” He kept his voice soft, not wanting to startle her into running again. He heard a noise and followed it, one hand on the gun tucked into the back of his jeans, just in case. He spotted her in the next room where she knelt, head hung low. He approached carefully, but she scrambled back a few feet, letting out a startled cry. “Hey, easy, I’m not gonna hurt you.” She glanced over at him, distrust plain on her face.

“Who the hell are you?” She was tense, ready to run at the slightest threat, so he stopped, hunkering down where he stood, speaking softly.

“My brother and I – we kinda rescued you. You were being held prisoner in an abandoned auto shop near here. You were unconscious, we were just waiting for you to wake up so we could get you home.”

“Who? Who was holding me there? I don’t understand.” He heard her stifle a soft sob as she relaxed into her heap on the floor again. “I had to see. I had to see for myself that they were really gone. I don’t understand. I was just with them. They were all here.”

Dean took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. “I know. That’s what they do. They give you what you want the most, inside your head, so you don’t fight them.”

She turned a tear-streaked face to look at him. “Who? Who would do that? Who _can_ do that?”

Dean stood back up. “They’re called djinn. They dose you with a chemical they produce in their skin. It makes you sleep, sends you to a dream world. A world that gives you what you want, so you’re content to just stay there in your head, and they drain you of blood until you finally die.”

Her brown eyes widened. “Are you – is that true?”

“Yeah. I know, it sounds crazy. If you look in the mirror, you’ll see where we removed the needle from your neck. Happened to me once, a few years ago. That world seems real, I know. And when you come out of it, it’s hard to believe it doesn’t really exist. But I’m sorry, whoever you’re looking for – if they were dead…” She stared at him, silent, for a couple of seconds, then looked away, her eyes on the floor.

“Yeah. I know.”

“Look, I’m sorry we scared you. You were still unconscious and we couldn’t exactly ask you where you lived. What’s your name?”

She looked up at him again, her eyes still shining with tears. “Toby. Toby Matheson.”

“My name’s Dean. Dean Winchester. The other guy with me is my brother, Sam. So - is this your place?”

She shook her head. “No. Mom and Dad, and my little brother – they lived here.”

He nodded. “Look, Toby - you need some rest, a little time to get your strength back. I promise we’ll get you back home. But you’re pretty weak. I’m surprised you didn’t wreck my car on the way here.”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I recognized where I was as soon as I left the motel and I just had to see for myself. And I don’t know you. I didn’t know what was happening. Who are you guys, anyway?”

“We’re – hunters. We hunt supernatural things that are out to hurt people like you. The djinn that took you - it’s dead. So you’re safe now. That’s what my brother and I do.”

“Everything okay?” Sam’s voice echoed softly in the empty room behind them, and Dean turned to look at him, nodding.

“Yeah. Sam, this is Toby. I’ve been trying to explain what happened.”

“Well, that little problem you wanted me to deal with is taken care of. Maybe we should get back?”

Dean looked back to Toby. “Toby? You okay with that?”

She hesitated, then nodded, dragging a weary hand over her face. “Yeah. Okay. Wait, I’ve got some things here, some clothes and…” Dean nodded and stepped closer, reaching a hand down to help her to her feet. “I’ll be right back.” She headed down the hall, returning a few moments later with a bag.

“Ready?” Dean asked softly. She glanced up at him, nodding once more, and letting him usher her out of the house as Sam closed the door behind them.

~~~~~~~~~~

Dean stirred, something he couldn’t quite grasp yet with his sleep-addled brain urging him to wake. He reached a hand beneath his pillow, fingers quietly grasping his pistol as he listened, every nerve on alert. Then he heard her, moving restlessly in her bed, her breathing becoming more quick and harsh with every passing second. She thrashed about suddenly, then sat bolt upright, a hoarse shout escaping her lips, her eyes wide and terrified.

He released his hold on his weapon and sat up slowly. “Toby, you’re okay. You’re safe. It was a nightmare.” He switched the lamp on and she blinked, squinting against the sudden glare. “You’re okay, Toby. It’s me, Dean. You’re with us, you’re safe.”

She sucked in a stuttering breath, blowing it out slowly between her lips and squeezing her eyes shut for a moment. “Sorry. I – I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“It’s okay. Nightmares kinda come with the territory. You all right?”

She took a few seconds to answer, then looked at him with a confused frown. “Actually – I’m starving.”

Dean’s face relaxed into an amused smile. “Well, that doesn’t surprise me. You’ve hardly eaten anything for three or four days. Sammy and I got you to drink some water, but that’s about it.” He glanced over at Sam, who was just sitting up, one eye squinted shut against the light.

“What’s wrong? You okay, Toby?”

“She’s hungry.” Sam’s eyebrows raised as he nodded. “Tell you what. There’s a truck stop just down the block, I’ll take you out for midnight breakfast. The clothes we grabbed from the house are on the table.”

She nodded, kicking the covers off and grabbing the bag of clothes, older things she had always just left at her parents’ place for when she was visiting, and headed to the bathroom to dress. Now that she had recognized her hunger, she was absolutely ravenous. She got ready quickly and returned as Dean finished packing away the sofa bed. “Go back to sleep, Sammy. I’m gonna get this girl some food.”

Sam shot them a one-sided smile and dropped back onto the mattress, pulling the covers up over his head. Toby smiled, hurried over to the lamp and shut it off, then headed out the door on Dean’s heels.

They had their choice of booths at the diner, sitting a good distance away from the only other couple in the place, and a waitress ambled over their way with a tired smile. “What can I getcha?”

Dean looked at Toby and smiled. “Just a suggestion, I know you’re starving, but you might wanna try some scrambled eggs and toast, maybe? Get your stomach used to food again.”

Toby sighed and nodded, smiling her agreement at the waitress, who jotted it down. “Can we at least get some bacon?”

Dean scoffed, then grinned. “Hell, yeah.” He looked up at the waitress. “Big ol’ plate of bacon. All the bacon. And a Trucker’s Special for me, and some hot sauce. Thanks.”

The waitress was laughing as she jotted his order down. “You got it, darlin’. Coffee?”


End file.
